Category: Comedy

Did Dan Fogler Spoil The End Of SECRETS & LIES?

Dan Fogler - Spoiler Alert

If you watch SECRETS & LIES on ABC then the biggest question on your mind is Who Killed Tom Murphy? Everyone has their own theories but not everyone gets a chance to sit down with a key cast member to discuss them. I recently had the the pleasure of interviewing Dan Fogler about the Kickstarter campaign for his new comic book Brooklyn Gladiator. Dan expertly plays the role of Dave Lindsey, who adds some much-needed moments of levity while also providing some tense dramatic story beats. After discussing Dan’s comic, I brought up my theory of who I think killed Tom. Dan’s reaction might reveal just a little too much. Watch for yourself and let us know what you think. #DidDaveKillTom?

Jerry Cavallaro  – @GetStuck  –  www.JerryCavallaro.com

HELL BABY – The Sundance Review

hell baby

No one will ever mistake Hell Baby for anything close to a comedy classic. But it made me laugh. A lot. I’ll fully admit that the thinner air in the elevations of Park City might have affected my judgment. It’s heavily disjointed and badly placed, mostly a series of sketches strung together with the loosest semblance of a plot. But there’s so much good stuff seeded throughout that the movie’s an almost perfect rental.

Rob Corddry and Leslie Bibb play a couple with a baby on the way who move into a dilapidated New Orleans house, which has an unfortunate haunting problem. Soon, Bibb’s character finds herself possessed by a demon looking to be born, and supernatural shenanigans abound, with all the expected references to classic possession movies. In time, a pair of Vatican-sent priests, played by directors Thomas Lennon and Robert Ben Garant, arrive to handle the problem.

But again, this story is just an excuse for extended gags about naked elderly women, getting high, and eating really good po-boys. The movie almost doesn’t even need the exorcism angle. Unlike pretty much every other parody to come out in recent years, it isn’t built around jokes that are basically scenes from the films it’s making fun of, but with added fart noises. It works by letting its performers cut loose, and they all get moments to shine.

And no one shines more here than Keegan Michael Key. As part of the eponymous lead duo of Key & Peele, the best sketch series on television, Key’s already demonstrated that he deserves the unending adulation of every single person who likes to laugh. Here he plays the main couple’s “next door neighbor” who is actually squatting in their house. Somehow, he manages to make an overused joke about coming out of nowhere consistently hilarious. His every facial expression is pure gold, and his manic energy is infectious, infusing every scene he’s in. This man will soon be a star.

Everyone has their moments, though. Corddry’s the harried straight man, while Bibb has fun playing up the “possessed woman” archetype. Lennon and Ben Garant run second to Key’s character as the brightest lights in the film as the supremely odd exorcists, who never stop smoking and have purposefully cartoonish foreign accents. Riki Lindhome turns up as a pretty standard hippy-dippy character, but has fun with it. Paul Scheer and Rob Heubel play wonderfully incompetent cops, with Scheer getting the movie’s best line (“Ain’t no one ever killed a demon baby by being careful”). It’s a solid ensemble, and they’re all clearly having fun.

Hell Baby was one of the most pleasant surprises I had at Sundance. I’d honestly sooner watch it again than more than a few of the movies that garnered a lot of acclaim (and awards) at the fest. It’s slight, and it won’t live on for long, but it’s a blast in a theater, and unquestionably worth a look.

PARENTAL GUIDANCE – The Review

Wow, can it really be 23 years since Billy Crystal was sitting across from Meg Ryan at the deli as she really, really enjoyed her lunch?! Yup and he’s playing a grandpa’ in the new family flick PARENTAL GUIDANCE. And guess who’s grandma’? THE ROSE herself, the still divine Bette Midler! The perennial Oscar host’s daughter is played by Oscar winner Marisa Tomei (MY COUSIN VINNY). These showbiz powerhouses have joined forces for this family friendly (just in time for the holidays) comedy all about..well…families. Here comes the incredibly cute kids and the big generational conflicts. Will they find a happy medium (and eventual ending)? Whatta’ you think?!

Artie Decker (Crystal) and his wife Diane (Midler) are getting ready to enjoy their golden years in sunny California. Life throws them a curve when Artie is fired from his long-standing job as the play-by-play man for a local minor league baseball team. Meanwhile in Atlanta, their only daughter Alice (Tomei) wants to travel with her hubby Phil (Tom Everett Scott) to an awards banquet at a distant resort. Phil’s parents are on a cruise, so she reluctantly calls her mom. Much to Artie’s chagrin she jumps at the chance to spend a few days with their three grandkids: thirteen year-old Harper who’s stressing out about a big music audition, picked upon eight year-old Turner (he’s studders), and wild free-spirited six year-old Barker. Alice isn’t sure if her folks will adhere to her modern parenting methods (she’s also holding on to some old grudges from childhood slights). Can she trust the care of the kids to them and get on the plane with Phil, for gosh sakes?!

The sitcom-like plot doesn’t give these usually talented performers a chance to play anything deeper than “types”. Crystal’s is wise-cracking, ingratiating host persona that we’ve seen so long on the talk shows and the big movie awards. I was wishing for a bit of the darkness he showed in MR. SATURDAY NIGHT. His Artie just wants everybody to like him and get along. He’s almost easing into the jovial “square” that Bob Hope repeated in his 1960’s films. A sequence of him in hip-hop drag as he auditions to be an ESPN X-Games host is particularly painful. Midler’s playing the nurturing, brassy “Auntie Mame” or “Mamma Rose” archetype. She’s gonna show those kids how to have real fun, by golly! There’s a hint of the acid-tongued Bette from RUTHLESS PEOPLE when she deals with a pushy violin teacher, but through most of the film she’s trying to reign in her hubby. Tomei’s regulated to being the repressive straight man to the Billy/Bette comedy duo (like Margaret DuMont and the Marxes). After interesting, edgy work in THE WRESTLER and BEFORE THE DEVIL KNOWS YOUR DEAD, this petulant, grown child/ hovering parent seems a couple of steps back career-wise. Good to see Scott back on the big screen, although his Dad role is shuttled off for most of the film. The kids are pretty good child actors with Bailee Madison building on the promise showed  couple years ago in DON’T BE AFRAID OF THE DARK.

As I mentioned above, the script could’ve have been the first four episodes of a TV sitcom (shot on videotape with a loud, raucous soundtrack, it would be right at home on the Disney cable channel). The slapstick is sloppy and stilted while many of the actors must mug shamelessly in order to sell the predictable jokes. The sticky sentimentality is equally tough to endure. Listening to ancient radio recordings forges a bond and brings one of the kids out of their shell. Ooo-kay… The same can be said of an old street game that magically brings everyone together. And a kitchen-staged performance of a doo-whop classic tune is almost unbearable (almost as cringe-worthy as the “Low Rider” number in THE ODD LIFE OF TIMOTHY GREEN earlier this year). Every pratfall and heart-tugging moment is hammered home by Marc Shaiman’s obvious score (sorry, but your SOUTH PARK score is still sublime). If you’ve got to entertain some older relatives in town for the holiday, then a trip to the multiplex for Billy and company may be just the ticket. But if you really enjoy the past work of these gifted stars, then you’ll want to wait and hope for more worthy material. As Artie Decker would say, “Swing and a miss!”

2 Out of 5

THIS IS 40 – The Review

After much success in one genre a film maker can become an adjective (in the Golden Age it was “Capra-esque”) and can branch out into a brand name with their production house presenting films from other directors with a similar sensibility. This was the case with Mel Brooks, then ZAZ (Zucker,Abrams,Zucker of AIRPLANE fame), the Farrelly brothers, and now Judd Apatow. After great box office success from producing (ANCHORMAN), he directed several hits (starting with THE 40 YEAR OLD VIRGIN), then his company became the home to more comedy smashes (particularly last year’s BRIDESMAIDS). Now Apatow is behind the camera for his fourth directorial feature (based on his script), THIS IS 40. He’s returned to the world of his 2007 film KNOCKED UP, but it’s not the standard sequel. Ben (Seth Rogan) and Alison (Katherine Heigl) aren’t sending their toddler off to kindergarten. Instead Apatow has taken a cue from TV and has spun off some supporting characters from the earlier flick (like “Frazier” spun off from “Cheers”). The new film is the further adventures of Alison’s big sister Debbie (played by Judd’s real life wife Leslie Mann), her hubby Pete (Paul Rudd) and their two daughters Sadie and Charlotte (played by Apatow siblings Maude and Iris). Is this “semi-sequel” follow-up another big screen bonanza of hilarity for the Apatow empire?

When we catch up with them Pete and Debbie will both be turning 40 within the next few days. Except Debbie is in such denial that her cake reads 38. She’s also dealing with some cash discrepancies at the dress shop she owns. Is Jodi (Charlyne Yi) or Desi (Megan Fox) pilfering 12 grand? Plus she’s trying to re-connect with her estranged father, Oliver (John Lithgow). As for Pete, his music label is bleeding cash, so he’s trying to hide that from Debbie along with the fact that he’s loaning money to his overwhelmed dad, Larry (seems his younger second wife gave birth to triplets!). The daughters are constantly bickering, with now teenage Sadie in full rebel mode. Their house never stays quiet for very long.

Apatow assembles an all-star cast for this slice of life flick. Rudd is his usual likeable everyman here as a guy who’s being pulled in so many different directions. He’s got a warm rapport with the young actors particularly. There’s also great chemistry with his biking bud Robert Smigel (the man behind Triumph the Insult Comic Dog). Rudd makes a believable spousal team with Mann. Hers is the more difficult role as Debbie is fighting middle age with all her might. Unfortunately she can come off as a vain exasperating pill in too many scenes. She does great work with Annie Mumolo (co-writer of BRIDESMAIDS) especially in an opening sequence with their personal trainer played by Apatow regular Jason Segal. The big surprise is the comedic turn from screen siren Megan Fox. The ladies night out with her and Mann scores several big laughs (especially as Fox talks about her side job). Lithgow has little to do besides being cold and aloof and Rudd’s music co-workers Chris O’Dowd (another BRIDESMAIDS alum) and Lena Dunham (HBO’s “Girls”) are under-utilized. And then there’s Apatow’s big score. After an outstanding villainous turn in last year’s DRIVE, Brooks returns to comedy as a modern Willy Loman. He’s got a big chip on his shoulder while being hyper-sensitive to any slight. His scenes with Rudd crackle. But the performer that may generate the most laughs per minute of screen time is BRIDESMAIDS MVP Melissa McCarthy as the enraged mother of one of Sadie’s schoolmates. Be sure and stick around for the end credits. Her (I suspect) mostly improved rage-fueled tirade in the principal’s office leaves the actors and crew in helpless hysterics. If only the entire film had her energy!

With his third film FUNNY PEOPLE, Apatow seemed to have a difficult time keeping his movies on track and within a reasonable running time. Unless the word “mad” is repeated four times in the title, no movie comedy should be over two hours (this problem has also occurred in the films he’s produced, like this year’s THE FIVE YEAR ENGAGEMENT). The story meanders all over the place with some subplots never really paying off (the strained Debbie/Oliver lunch or the Pete produced Graham Parker CD). Far too much time is taken up with endless bickering. One horrific screaming tirade from Sadie is met with little punishment. Much of the time this film plays out like the viewer is trapped at a very bad, tension-filled dinner party. The big BBQ birthday party for Pete near the film’s end is one awkward moment piled on top of another and another leading to a forced reconciliation. Lots of folks will find much to laugh about and identify with in this film, but from the man who’s brought us some of the best TV and movie comedy of the last couple decades THIS IS 40 is a rambling, unfocused effort. I truly wish this gifted film maker better luck (and laughs) next time.

3 Out of 5

 

 

 

 

 

 

SENSE OF HUMOR – SLIFF Review

Here’s an unusual movie mash-up from French Canadian writer/director Emile Gaudreaullt: a thriller set in the world of stand-up comedy. Films have been made about traveling comedians, spewing jokes while bathed in a bright spotlight against (usually) a bare, brick wall starting with LENNY through PUNCHLINE and the recent SLEEPWALK WITH ME. These guys have their bad gigs, but nothing like what happens to Luc (Louis Jose’-Houde) and Marco (Benoit Briere). First off, they really don’t care much for each other. Luc is a dry, cerebral, observational humorist who considers Marco a hack who relies too much on wacky props and costumes, bits stolen from the internet, and phony sentimentality. But what really irks Luc is the fact that audiences adore Marco. How did these two get paired up for a tour of small Canadian clubs? As part of his routine, Marco singles out a fellow from the audience as a “stooge” to be the butt of pre-written insults and jabs. At one of their stops, a bored Luc joins him in verbally pummeling a shy, somber guy named Roger (Michel Cote). But what the two comics don’t know (but was revealed in the film’s opening) is that the meek Roger, who’s bad-mouthed by his elderly ill-tempered Dad at home and teased at his job as a short-order cook, has a hobby. He’s a serial killer who’s turned the barn of the remote family farm into a torture chamber for his ‘guests”. After that night’s show, the comics retire to their dingy motel rooms and wake up in a cage at Roger’s barn. In tracking to calm him down, the two get Roger to reveal his hidden desire. He wants to be funny, so he can impress the pretty waitress at work. Luc and Marco must try to work together and turn the serious Roger into the life of the party during their evening while attempting to escape their cage while their captor’s at his day job. The three main principals turn in very funny performances and are well served by the actors playing Roger’s co-workers, Marco’s depressed wife, and Luc’s way-too-in-touch-with-her-feelings sister. There’s a great balance between the verbal sparring off the mis-matched comics on the road and the wild slapstick scenes as they try to gain their freedom. This is a very entertaining blend of genres that balances the chills and laughs.

SENSE OF HUMOR screens as part of the 21st Annual Whitaker Saint Louis International Film Festival on Wednesday, November 14 at 7 PM and Friday, November 16 at 9:30 PM at the Plaza Frontenac Cinemas

STRUCK BY LIGHTNING – SLIFF Review

High school is a tough place. We all know that. Its a struggle to survive at a time when hormones rule and pressure builds from every angle. Parents, teachers, friends, where to go to college, whether to even go to college? For Carson Phillips, everything is boiling to a point and all he wants is one simple thing… to get into his dream college.

Chris Colfer (GLEE) not only stars as the sharp-tongued Carson Phillips, he wrote this darkly comical satire on the high school experience. Directed by Brian Dannelly, the film is a good fit for someone whose resume includes TV shows like WEEDS, PUSHING DAISIES and THE UNITES STATES OF TARA. STRUCK BY LIGHTNING begins with the death of Carson Phillips. I know, its a risky way to start a film. After all, it goes to reason that Carson never makes it to college, but that’s not really what its all about, as we come to learn while Carson’s recently departed spirit narrates the film in retrospect.

Carson is the editor of his school’s newspaper. This would be a commendable accomplishment, except that he attends a small, rural country school, where everyone assumes they are destined to be stuck in the dreadful town of Clover for the remainder of their days and therefor aspire to do next to nothing with their lives. That is, all but one… Carson Phillips. Smarter than the average Clover resident — by his own measure — Carson dreams of becoming an accomplished journalist. The problem is, no one at his school cares.

Rebel Wilson (BRIDEMAIDS) plays Malerie, an odd character and Carson’s only friend. Allyson Janney plays Carson’s alcoholic mother, devastated when Carson’s father Neil (Dermot Mulroney) leaves them, she takes it out on Carson, day after day. Things for Carson are looking grim, until he comes up with not just a plan to get into his dream college, but a master plan for forcing the student body to contribute by way of blackmailing them with their dirty little secrets in exchange for their help.

STRUCK BY LIGHTNING features all the high school stereotypes, dialed up to be especially unlikeable. For that matter, even Carson is difficult to like, with his smart mouth and arrogant attitude, but we root for him as the lesser of all evils. Clover is not a town most people will find inviting, but it lends to an idea that small town teenagers often struggle with what to do with their lives and how to achieve such goals. On the other hand, Carson ultimately learns a valuable lesson about life, albeit a short one in his case.

Like so many high school comedies today, STRUCK BY LIGHTNING does fall into the same general melting pot of modern teen-life stories. This is no DONNIE DARKO, but the film does still have a personality of its own buried just beneath the many cliches. The supporting cast offers an added touch of talent, including Christina Hendricks as Carson’s dad’s new fiance, Sarah Hyland as Claire, the stuck-up lead cheerleader who “probably sh*ts cupcakes,” Ashley Rickards as Vicki, the apathetic Goth girl, Angela Kinsey as the absent-minded blond bimbo school counselor, and Brad William Henke as the jaded high school principal with anger management issues.

Overall, STRUCK BY LIGHTNING is an exaggerated and humorous take on a certain set of truths about high school. Chris Colfer interjects a dialogue clearly inspired by his experience with GLEE, but fails to deliver anything refreshingly original. Instead of a film that could grow into a cult classic of the genre, the film settles for being an entertaining movie worth seeing with a bucket of popcorn in one arm and a lovely companion in the other. The film is not likely to stick with you for long, but you certainly will have a good time and plenty of laughs.

Overall Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

STRUCK BY LIGHTNING screens during the 21st Annual Whitaker St. Louis International Film Festival on Tuesday, November 13th, 7:30pm at the Tivoli Theatre.

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THE GIANT MECHANICAL MAN – SLIFF Review

I have a lot of respect for street performers. From music to magic and everything in between, street performer add a level of artistic vibrancy to areas otherwise typically bogged down in the dry, monotone corporate atmosphere. Have you ever been having a bad day, been walking along sulking in your grumpiness, then come upon a street performer who actually made you smile, even for a moment? If not, I hope you do, because it works… and, this is where THE GIANT MECHANICAL MAN succeeds.

For a feature film debut, writer and director Lee Kirk does play it safe on some level. THE GIANT MECHANICAL MAN certainly follows a fairly standard format of the romantic comedy genre. The humor is offbeat, quirky but never heavy-handed. The film may be playing itself safe structurally, but the content is what makes the film enjoyable. How many romantic comedies have we seen that are absurdly unrealistic or saturated in sappiness? It’s refreshing to see one like this come along that tosses those conventions to the wayside.

THE GIANT MECHANICAL MAN stars hometown girl Jenna Fischer as Janice and Chris Messina as Tim. This is, of course, a story about boy meets girl, but there’s an underlying vein of existentialism that inks this map to our characters’ story ending “happily ever after.” Tim is an artist, at least he believes he is and can be, refusing to give up and supplements his journey as a street performer. Tim paints his face silver, hops onto stilts and throws on his silver suit and bowler hat, transforming into the giant mechanical man passersby see on the streets. Toss some change in his briefcase, and he does a little show mimicking a mechanical robot toy. Chris Messina sells these performances well.

Janice is a kindred spirit. With no true direction in her life, she works for a temp agency to make ends meet. Janice struggles with how everyone around her appears to happy, seems to have it all figured out while she really has no clue what she wants from life. However, its the constant pressure she gets from the world around her that makes her unhappy, not her lack of direction. Her younger sister Jill (Malin Akerman) and her husband are constantly on her case, pressuring her to figure things out, but all Janice really wants is to enjoy her life and find her own way.

THE GIANT MECHANICAL MAN starts off at a relatively slow pace, but is hoisted up by the blunt, quirky humor that resides just below the threshold we’ve come to find familiar in TV shows like THE OFFICE, from which Fischer cut her chops. Not until Janice loses her temp job and begins looking for new work do things begin to fall into place. Meanwhile, Tim finds himself cut loose by his pretentiously hip girlfriend who deals a devastating blow to his ego, leading him also to find new work to make ends meet. Both parties find work at the zoo.

One thing leads to another, Janice and Tim meet, they fall in love, stuff happens… sadness… and so on. As I mentioned before, THE GIANT MECHANICAL MAN follows a pretty standard romantic comedy formula. The difference is in how Lee Kirk fills in the blanks. There is a subtle sweetness to the film, just enough to pep you up rather than loading you so full that you slip into a diabetic coma. After all, isn’t that how life really is… filled with little moments of just the right amount of sweetness to make you remember everything will be alright?

Tim has an outsider-looking-in view of the world. He’s not depressed, nor is he a pessimist; he’s just a guy who sees others for who they really are and refuses to be someone other than exactly who he is, unlike so many he sees around him, always pretending to be whomever others will accept. Chris Messina puts a lot of stock in his eyes, giving his character a depth necessary to sell the performance. Jenna Fischer takes a few steps deeper into the emotional end of the pool and pulls it off swimmingly. Together, Messina and Fischer maintain on on screen chemistry that is honest and entertaining. For lack of better words, the two of them together are truly cute.

THE GIANT MECHANICAL MAN is not real life, but it takes romance and the struggles inherent into territory not common to the genre. Tim and Janice are surrounded by self-absorbed, often nasty human beings, making them seem like the normal ones struggling to stay afloat in a world bent on keeping them under. Janice’s sister Jill spends most of the film trying way too hard to hook her up with a self-absorbed, nauseatingly fake and annoying self-help author named Doug (Topher Grace). He is primarily here for comic relief, and while Topher Grace succeeds at making us truly hate his character, it often becomes unbearable to watch.

Lee Kirk has crafted a commendable addition to the romantic comedy genre. THE GIANT MECHANICAL MAN is a film I would happily watch again, especially since there’s a level of intelligence to the story and what the director appears to be saying about how meeting people and developing relationships in life is often a struggle for the more sensitive, outsider types that don’t fit into a common mold. THE GIANT MECHANICAL MAN was shot in Detroit, played at the Tribeca Film Festival (also, being distributed by Tribeca Films) and is accompanied by an appealing soft indie rock soundtrack I look forward to hopefully being able to purchase someday down the road.

Overall Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

THE GIANT MECHANICAL MAN screens during the 21st Annual Whitaker St. Louis International Film Festival on Monday, November 12th, 7:15pm at the Tivoli Theatre.

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KLOWN – SLIFF Review

I normally do not subscribe to the hipness of using “OMG” but found the obnoxious acronym making numerous appearances in my mind while watching KLOWN. Based on the popular Danish television series by the same creative force, the film fine tunes its awkwardly direct and unbelievable content to fit perfectly within a feature film.

KLOWN follows the antics of Frank (Frank Hvam) and Casper (Casper Christensen) as they embark on the “Tour de Pussy,” an annual pilgrimage to the estate of a wealthy man who hosts the best prostitutes from around the world for just on day of unforgettable debauchery. But, this is the story of their journey, not of the event itself. After Frank makes an utter mess of his relationship with Mia (Mia Lyhne) following some major, unexpected news. He joins Casper for a canoe trip down the river to the big event, but not without making a complete disaster of that as well.

Co-written by real-life comics Casper Christensen and Frank Hvam, and directed by Mikkel Norgaard, KLOWN pulls few punches and shies from even fewer taboos, but approaches the material with a distinctly European style. The film is a hilarious riot, but garners its laughs with subtle, brilliant tastelessness. Structurally, the film resembles THE HANGOVER, but with an ironically higher level of maturity. In many ways, KLOWN combines the vulgarity of this style of comedy with the awkwardness of THE OFFICE and the intelligence of Louis CK’s TV series LOUIE.

The key ingredient to the underlying story of KLOWN, is the young boy named Bo (Marcuz Jess Petersen) whom Frank uses catastrophically as a tool to prove to Mia he is a responsible man. Despite the crude nature of the comedy, KLOWN is actually a movie with a message, nearly invisible but present, as Frank gradually learns how to be a better man. Frank and Casper are polar opposite personalities, but work well together, like Abbott and Costello or Lucy and Desi. Both characters are accidents waiting to happen, walking magnets for things to go horribly wrong.

KLOWN’s real appeal comes from Frank’s misguided actions aren’t without good intentions, albeit microscopic, but are masked by his selfish nature, a trait he is entirely oblivious too. Casper’s relentless pathology for sex only exasperates the many gut-wrenching scenes, dragging Frank and Bo along with him through the muck and filth. There is a very clear and well choreographed chain reaction at play here, allowing the absurdity to play out naturally on screen.

Fair warning goes out to those easily offended, as KLOWN raises the shock bar higher than we’ve seen in American cinema, yet does so with a much more candid, more easily digestible formula to swallow.

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

KLOWN will play during the 21st Annual Whitaker St. Louis International Film Festival on Monday, November 12th (9:30pm) at Plaza Frontenac Cinema and again on Friday, November 16th (9:30pm) at Wildey Theatre.

Marlon Wayans Stars In Open Road Films’ A HAUNTED HOUSE Trailer

See Marlon Wayans in A HAUNTED HOUSE, creeping into theaters January 11, 2013. Known for the SCARY MOVIES franchise, Wayans tweeted. “A HAUNTED HOUSE is special to me. It’s my first venture on my own as a writer/producer/creator/star thK god for my great cast & team RA & MT.” The comedy is directed by Michael Tiddes who’s worked with the Wayans Brothers on LITTLEMAN and WHITE CHICKS.

In an outrageous send up of the Paranormal Activity movies, The Devil Inside and other “found footage” movies, A HAUNTED HOUSE features young couple Malcolm (Marlon Wayans) and Kisha (Essence Atkins) who have just moved in to their dream house. As they settle in, they quickly find they’re not alone. But it’s not the house that’s haunted, it’s Malcolm’s girlfriend who is possessed by a demon. Malcolm hires everyone from a priest to modern day ghostbusters to rid her of this unwelcome intruder, determined not to let the evil spirit ruin his relationship… or, more importantly, his sex life.

A HAUNTED HOUSE stars Marlon Wayans, Essence Atkins, Cedric The Entertainer, Nick Swardson, David Koechner and Affion Crocket.

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NIGHT OF THE PUNKS – The Short Review

Dan Riesser’s horror/comedy short NIGHT OF THE PUNKS has played quite well at various film festivals. The full film, less than twenty minutes long, is available for viewing right here.

So, is it worth a look?

That depends. Can you stomach gore that’s simultaneously gross and funny, due to its over-the-top, low-budget nature? Do you have a deep-seated affection for the spook-a-blast stylings of the 1980’s? Can you find it in yourself to root for punk rock musicians? If yes, then I’d say that this short is more than worthy of checking out. Riesser, who shot the movie on a micro-budget, wants to turn it into a feature, and he displays more than enough chops to get the job done. I wish him the best of luck.

The story follows the members of Brain Dead, a small-time punk band who get booked for their first road show. But when they arrive at the venue, they find nothing but a dingy bar, almost devoid of customers. And once they start playing, they discover that most of the patrons who are there are actually demons hungering for human flesh. A bloody, slap-sticky fight for survival ensues.

The script often goes overboard on reference humor, and sometimes the dialogue can be horribly stilted, although that aspect may or not be intentional, given the feel that the movie is going for. The actors sometimes fail to sell their situation all that well, although this too actually adds to the movie’s campy, tongue-in-cheek atmosphere. Really, while the movie is far, far from perfect, it really wouldn’t feel right to lambast it too heavily for its shortcomings. It’s a small-time production that’s available for free. And since it’s more of a proof of concept than anything else, I’ll give it a pass. NIGHT OF THE PUNKS is a fun little movie.

Overall Rating: 3 out of 5 stars